Thursday, May 28, 2009

In a Country Churchyard

(1) CWGC Headstone of Volunteer Joseph Stuart, Home Guard

(2) St Mary’s Church, Threlkeld, near Keswick, Cumbria
(Originally a ‘Chapel of Ease’ for Greystoke Parish Church)
In this small country Churchyard lie two casualties of WW2
Recently, while researching casualties from the Cleator Moor area of Cumbria I paid a visit to the Cumbrian village of Threlkeld, situated between Keswick and Greystoke. In the recent past Threlkeld had many families involved in farming or mining. But it was also the location of Blencathra Sanatorium. This was where patients from the former county of Cumberland were often sent if they suffered from tuberculosis (TB).

A small number of the WW2 casualties from Cleator Moor had died at the former Blencathra Sanatorium, which was the primary reason for my recent visit to Threlkeld. Patients who died at Blencathra Sanatorium during the war were buried elsewhere – close to their home towns - I did find there were two WW2 casualties from Threlkeld buried in this small country Churchyard – Volunteer Joseph Stuart and Gunner Alfred Tangye.

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